Lt. Cmdr. Alora DeVeau - "Don't Forget The Tour Offer"
Amanda Nordstrom
((DeVeau's Office, StarBase 118))
Alora loved giving gifts. She liked receiving them, to be certain, but even better was giving something away to someone else. For things like birthday and Christmas, when she was able to find something that *really* clicked, that brought the light of delight to a person’s eyes, watching that was just one of the best things ever.
But Christmas and birthdays only came one a year each, and Alora enjoyed giving for other reasons. What she was most known for was the gift of beauty - specifically in the form of a plant. Not just any plant, but one in particular. It had started even before her entry into Starfleet academy. Other than her small collection of wayward animals, Alora had her larger collection of plants. Some were in the yard, carefully cultivated and cared for, but many had taken place within the home. Her mother, while not any sort of botanist, had enjoyed plants as well and had little trouble with such a past time - and in truth, she’d kept at least a couple of African violets for most of her life, long before Alora’s birth.
And that was likely how she got started, for the science officer turned first officer remembered those plants sitting in the windowsills, blooming merrily for all but a couple of months a year. Her mother knew how to keep them happy. Alora had learned how to keep them happy. Now she wanted to spread their beauty throughout the cosmos. Or at least throughout Starfleet.
So, whenever she met someone, it was very common for her to gift that person a plant. That very day, she had been introduced to Aine Sherlock, a small but impressive Tactical Officer. She passed it along, her smile bright as she set the plant in front of the woman in yellow.
DeVeau: I will send you detailed instructions, but it’s not hard to care for, and they will bloom most of a Standard year - up to 10 months if you keep them happen.
Sherlock: I'll follow the instructions to a T, you have my word. And thank you very much, they're quite lovely.
DeVeau: No thanks needed. I enjoy spreading beauty.
And they were beautiful, those flowers. All of them were, an there were so many varieties in terms of colour as well as patterns.
Sherlock: Sometimes it feels like I can barely keep myself alive, but I'll make sure these little guys survive.
The grin was accompanied by a soft laugh and she nodded. If the woman was giving her her word, Alora would believe her.
DeVeau: Dont’ hesitate to ask if you have any questions or issues. As to the other, are you still interested in a tour?
Sherlock: The tour? Oh! Yes, you mentioned a tour. I've got plenty of time and I'd be eager to see some of the station.
Alora nodded. She could only give her a taste of the station, as it was far too massive to take in all in one day. Or even a week. Or month…or year…since she was coming on to two years at Ops, she could well attest to that. Despite that length of time, there was much still to discover.
DeVeau: How about tomorrow then? We are technically on shore leave, so I guess that means my schedule is open.
Sherlock: ?
Alora would likely get some work don eat some point. Then again, she might just not do anything the entire day and just enjoy herself. That was the point of shore leave after all.
DeVeau: Awesome. We can have lunch together too if you want. And there’s all sorts of things to see and do. Do you like Klingon opera?
Sherlock: ?
Alora laughed again and shook her head.
DeVeau: I love it myself, though I recognise that it’s not for everyone . Then again, I’m big into music in general. All right, so see you tomorrow?
Sherlock?
-- Lt. Cmdr. Alora DeVeau First Officer Starbase 118 Ops al...@blar.net M239008AD0